“I always thought it was cool how different medicine helps people, and I always wanted to help people.” - Jasmine has always had an interest in medicine. She came to AACF last year through her Pharmacy Technician training program at PharmT Prep LLC when her instructor connected her with financial aid resources. AACF was one of them. Through AACF Jasmine was able to receive funding to cover her Pharmacy Technician training courses, plus much more.

Since Jasmine completed her Pharmacy Technician training, AACF case manager Chuckita Smith has connected her with a paid internship at a Walgreens pharmacy near her home. Jasmine is grateful for Chuckita’s assistance in helping her to complete her Pharmacy Technician training, receive financial aid from AACF to cover the cost of her training courses at PharmT Prep LLC, checking in with her on a regular basis to see how things are going, connect her with resources and send her to job fairs.

“[Chuckita’s assistance] was extremely helpful for passing my classes because I have two kids. I didn’t have enough funds to pay for things because I wasn’t working during the summer.” - Jasmine

Jasmine currently works full time for Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and is off during the summer. Jasmine’s role with CPS is administering COVID tests at different sites throughout the school system. Last year she worked for CPS as a care room attendant, overseeing a room in a school where children go if they may be positive for COVID to wait until a parent is able to pick them up. Previous employment for Jasmine has included security, receptionist, grocery store worker, and home care aid. As a teen mom she tapped into assistance from UCAN, a local non profit dedicated to supporting youth and families, for after school jobs and summer jobs.

Jasmine is no stranger to hard work and is savvy at accessing resources for assistance when needed. Grateful for the help she has received from AACF, Jasmine has encouraged her friends and her two younger sisters to reach out to AACF for job training and job finding assistance.

Jasmine just needs to pass the state board exam for Pharmacy Technician to become fully licensed and then she will be eligible for pharmacy positions paying $23 hour plus benefits. We are glad you reached out to us, Jasmine - and proud of you for all of your hard work and what you have been able to accomplish! Good luck on your state boards!

We are excited that our Pharmacy Technician Training Program has been approved by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board as a recognized educational or training program! This means that graduates from our program will gain a nationally credentialed Pharmacy Technician license after passing the certification exam.

Pharmacy Technician is a great career choice for individuals who love interacting with others, helping people, problem solving, and who enjoy attention to detail. Students entering our Pharmacy Technician Training Program will learn employability skills, customer service, and essential workplace skills that can be transferable to any workplace setting. Graduates from a can work as pharmacy clerks, pharmacy technician trainee, compounding technician to lead pharmacy technician.

Pharmacy Technicians work in support of the licensed Pharmacist on staff in the organization. There are multiple responsibilities involved in the role including serving customers, measuring medications, communicating with doctors’ offices and insurance providers, and processing payments for prescriptions. Medical field knowledge as well as administrative knowledge and the ability to serve customers are required for this role.

Now approved by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board as a recognized educational or training program our two-month Pharmacy Technician Training Program will prepare students to become a Certified Pharmacy Technician. Students in the program will learn the basics of pharmacy assistance, including pharmacology, medical terminology and abbreviations, anatomy and pathophysiology, as well as pharmacy calculations and measurements. Students will also learn about pharmacy law and ethics and healthcare systems.

Our comprehensive Pharmacy Technician Training Program will prepare our students for the pharmacy technician certification and have them career-ready to enter the field. Once students have received their licensure, we also work to place them in local pharmacies close to their homes. From A to Z, we will assist our Pharmacy Technician Training Program participants until they land their first job in a local pharmacy with a jump start in their pharmacy career!

We at the African American Christian Foundation (AACF) are here to help our low income youth neighbors succeed in all areas of their lives. Many of our program participants have grown up in neighboring West Side Chicago as well as the South Side areas with a higher rate of gun violence than other areas in Chicagoland. Also within those demographics are struggling socioeconomic levels. The impact of growing up in areas with struggling socioeconomic levels as well as trauma from proximity to gun violence can affect young peoples’ ability to focus and learn in school. Many of our participants have struggled with staying in school and may need assistance with earning their high school diploma or passing the GED. 

Low economic levels as well as violence have a lasting effect on families as a whole. Many program participants grew up in single working parent households and may have had to get jobs from a young age to contribute to the household economics rather than focus on school work. Many of our participants have children of their own. And some of our participants are returning citizens with an incarceration record severely impacting their ability to secure employment. There are many barriers to success for a young person growing up in a struggling area, with a low income background. Some of these barriers include:

Growing up in a single working parent household

Young people who grew up with a single working parent often have less opportunities than those with both parents at home who lend a hand in their upbringing. A youth with a single working parent may at times begin to work early to help out with the household expenses. They may not have someone at home who can help them with their homework or make them a meal in the evening. They will need to learn to be self-sufficient early and may not have had important social-emotional needs met as they are growing. 

Growing up in a neighborhood of high crime 

Youths who grow up in a neighborhood of high crime and gun violence are impacted by the trauma of seeing their neighbors lose their lives, or also of being victims of gun violence themselves. Resulting trauma can impact their ability to focus and stay in school, maintain healthy, positive relationships, and make wise decisions for their futures. 

Being a young parent

Young people who become early parents may have difficulty focusing on schoolwork or staying in school while caring for an infant or toddler. If they don’t have help caring for their child while they are in school, they may end up dropping out of school to care for their child. If they have completed school they may need training for a job and will need to secure childcare, and that is challenging with no or low income. Being a young parent can be a very challenging situation when school needs to be completed and an income needs to be earned. 

Being a returning citizen

Those growing up in neighborhoods of high violence have a higher incidence of engaging in criminal activity themselves and a higher rate of incarceration. Unfortunately, many workplaces are discriminatory towards individuals with incarceration records. It can be a self-defeating spiral for a returning citizen with the struggle of gaining employment. There are organizations that assist returning citizens with securing employment. AACF is one of them.

How we can help

There are many things that can be done to assist low income youth to succeed in all areas of their lives. We can lend a helping hand with completing education in the form of tutoring or free assistance with passing the GED. One of the most important things an individual can do for themselves is gain an education. We can assist with higher education, entering into a junior college, trade school, or apprenticeship. For those growing up with the impact of trauma we can offer mental health support in the form of free counseling or group support. For young parents we can offer assistance with childcare, infant needs, and parenting skills. And for returning citizens we can place you in paid internships, work to hire situations where you can gain dignified employment.

How you can help

If you are interested in helping out our youth participants to complete their education or gain employment here are some volunteer opportunities for you:

Teacher Assistant Volunteers – Teacher Assistant Volunteers or tutors serve as teacher’s aides for the AACF CTC formal and fee-based classroom programs. They help set up the classroom, check in participants, and assist AACF clients with crafts and other fun activities.

Mentors – Mentors mentor youth program participants and assist case managers in guiding mentees to accomplish their individual development plans. Mentors may chaperone field trips with the youth program coordinator or perform worksite visits or school visits as needed, to maintain the relationship with a mentee.

If you are interested in learning about our other volunteer opportunities click here.

How the community can help

If you are a business owner or a manager of a business, please consider partnering with us to become a worksite. We will place youths in your worksite and we will cover their wages for a specified length of time. Our workforce development program participants receive case management and Support for Success as they travel along their journey towards building a stable income for themselves. We appreciate all of your help!

Click here If you are interested in becoming a worksite.

We believe that as a youth workforce development not for profit and as a community as a whole we can assist our low income youth neighbors to overcome any barrier to securing dignified work and attain financial stability. Reach out to us if you or someone you know is in need of a job, assistance with education or job training, or has other needs relating to being low income. We are here for you! Go to waitlist to join our programs.

Why is Black History everyone’s history? The United States is undoubtedly a powerful nation, considered by U.S. News and World Report to be the world’s most dominant economic and military power. By 1860, towards the end of Slavery, the South was producing 75% of the world’s cotton and producing millionaires galore. We stand firmly on the grounds of wealth built by the sweat and toil of more than 4,000,000 enslaved people. The opportunities granted us today by our great nation are built upon the foundation of early wealth created during the time of Slavery. For that reason, Black History is everyone’s history.

The theme for Black History Month this year is Black Resistance, honoring the resistance of oppression and racial terrorism perpetrated against African Americans since the time of Slavery, continuing to the present day. Passive resistance, led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. utilized nonviolent forms of protest such as sit-ins and were engaged in by both Blacks and Whites during the Civil Rights Movement (1896 - 1954). Freedom Riders were Blacks and Whites who intentionally used “whites-only” restrooms and lunch counters in segregated bus stations drawing violence from white protesters along with international attention. These forms of Black resistance drew attention to the injustices faced by Blacks and helped to shape legislation for equality.

Black churches have long been safe spaces for Blacks to gather, worship, and also organize. During the time of Slavery, Black churches served as safe havens and places of respite for those escaping to the North. Later they became the meeting places for organizers during the Civil Rights Movement. Early Black missionaries served as educators in a newly emancipated South. Black churches have a long history of serving as hubs for community as well as growing the seeds of education.

Education has played a key role for Black people to resist systemic racism at a foundational level. Education is the great leveler and a strong force for equality. It is the responsibility of educators to teach truth in the form of revealing the great injustices placed upon Africans, kidnapped and brought to America to be owned as property and enslaved under threat of death. This is a part of all of our history. It is our responsibility to learn the truth of our nation’s history and to continue the fight for equality, equity, and fairness for all.

Join the resistance to fight inequality and make this a more just and peaceful world. Here’s what you can do:

• Learn - Read about Black History and learn about notable Black figures throughout history, or read books by Black authors.
• Attend events relating to Black History. Do an internet search, there are many in your area.
• Volunteer - Give service at a community organization that serves Blacks or other minorities.
• Support Black owned businesses.
• Learn about Black History leaders and their contributions

Key Black History dates and historical figures:

• Slavery legal - 1400s - 1865
• Slave trade illegal - 1808
• Civil War - (1861-1865)
• Emancipation Proclamation - January 1, 1863
• Thirteenth Amendment - 1865
• Juneteenth - June 19, 1865
• Carter G. Woodson founded the origins of Black History Month - (Negro History Week, 1926)
• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. - Civil Rights leader (1929-1968)
• Harold Washington - Chicago’s first Black mayor (1983 - 1987)
• President Barack Obama - first Black president - (2009-2017)
• Kamala Harris - first African American woman vice president - (2020 -  )

 

 

Celebrate Black History Month with us by entering our Black History Month poetry contest and let your voice be heard! Submit a poem in rhyme or free verse about what is important to you about Black History Month. Prizes for the winners - We want to hear from YOU!

This year’s theme for Black History Month is: “Black Resistance” where we celebrate Black resistance to oppression and violence perpetrated against African Americans since the time of Slavery. Throughout U.S. history both Black and White freedom fighters have rallied together in resistance to African American oppression - from the fight against Slavery in the South, to the Civil War, to Jim Crow laws legalizing racial segregation until 1968, barring African Americans from the right to vote, gain education, and hold living wage jobs. Oppression against African Americans has been perpetrated in many ways including violence and barring from voting, jobs, education, and owning property. We believe that education and job training is a form of fighting this oppression, enabling African Americans, other minorities, and low income community members to rise to a safe and secure level of economy. We urge you all to join us in this fight! 

Founded by historian Carter G. Woodson in 1915 and nationally recognized since 1976, the intention of Black History Month is to educate U.S. citizens about the history of African Americans, how they were kidnapped and brought here to be enslaved, won their freedom and continue that fight today for freedom and equality. The power of education is in all of our hands and in all of our voices. Join our poetry contest and let your voice be heard!

Please email your Poetry Contest submissions to: klopez@aacfworks.org

Deadline is: Friday, February 24

Prizes will be announced on Tuesday, February 28

 

A huge THANK YOU to the Edmond and Alice Opler Foundation for the gift of funding to provide up to thirty laptops for our program participants involved in vocational training or work that requires technology. This generous donation allows us to increase the number of youths to which we can provide free education and job training. The addition to our Technology Training Center will be instrumental in allowing us to increase our scope of helping low income youth to rise above the level of poverty and gain financial freedom and independence. IT-related careers are the fastest growing job field in the nation, with a projected 20% rate of growth, now through 2030. Equipping our low income youth program participants with these valuable and highly marketable job skills will prepare them for a future of economic growth and financial success.

We are currently providing Pharmacy Tech training, Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) training, and Commercial Drivers License training to our participants. Additionally, we place participants in paid internships and on the job training work situations which provide living wages and opportunities for our youth to gain work experience and become economically independent, building lifelong career pathways.  

More on the Edmond and Alice Opler Foundation:

Based in a south suburb in Chicagoland, the private grantmaking foundation was created by its namesakes Edmond and Alice Opler who have committed their lives to working for and with organizations that support the well-being of youths, adults, and families. Their mission is: to foster the well-being of children, including, but not limited to, organizations involved in education, the arts and culture, social interaction, health and rehabilitation, and support of children in need and also includes the well-being of adults, families, the mentally disabled, blind and deaf, those experiencing homelessness, and giving to organizations devoted to supporting those experiencing financial and social setbacks.

It is through the generous donations of organizations like the Edmond and Alice Opler Foundation and others that we are able to provide free education and job training to our youth program participants, enabling them to embark upon living wage careers with room to grow. If you would like to support our cause of empowering low income community to rise to a level of financial freedom and independence, please consider giving in a variety of ways:

Volunteer [https://aacfworks.org/help-us/volunteer/]

Partner with Us [https://aacfworks.org/become-a-worksite/]

Donate [https://aacfworks.org/help-us/]